Transport of industrial gases on rolling stock



May 16, 1961 l.. BRzsl-:l Erm. 2,984,379

TRANSPORT OF' INDUSTRIAL GASES ON ROLLING STOCK Filed July 23, 1957 JNVENToRs La'szlo' Brzsei BY Vencel S'rark ATTORNEYS United States Patent() TRANSPORT OF INDUSTRIAL GASES ON ROLLING STOCK Lszl Brzse and Vencel Stark, Budapest, Hungary, as-

signors to Csepel Vas-es Femmuvek, Csepel, Budapest, Hungary Filed July 23, 1957, Ser. No. 673,631

`Claims priority, application Hungary July 27, 1956 Z Claims. (Cl. 220-3) This invention relates to a pressure vessel for transporting industrial gases, more particulanly natural gas, on railway rolling stock such las railway trucks.

Natural gas is at present transported on rolling stock by means of Aa number of drawn cylinders mounted on the truck frame. The diameter `of these cylinders generally amounts to about 200 to 300 mm. `and their length usually corresponds to about half the length of the truck, that is, about 7 meters. In view off the fact that the usual working pressure amounts to 150 p.s.i. gauge pressure, the cylinders would have to be made of a special material of great tensile strength. It has been the usual practice to mount on each railway truck 70 to 80 of such cylinders, which at one end were closed by screw plugs and at the other end by closure constructions, which latter are interconnected. The connected closure constructions are connected by means ofl'a pipe line with the main valve, through which the lilling and emptying of the cylinders take place.

The main disadvantage of the known arrangement is that the many closure elements associated with the cylinders are frequently the cause of leakage. The dead Weight of the cylinders is considerable, While the arranging of them entails considerable and accurate assembling work, as well as loss of time.

The invention has for its object to provide a pressure vessel for the transport of industrial gases on rolling stock, which makes the use of a multiplicity of cylinders superlluous. Consequently the danger of leakage is greatly reduced, the useful load is increased, `and the assembly can be carried out more simply and in less time.

The pressure vessel according to Ythe invention consists of Wound high pressure gas vessels of large dimensions, which are secured on the railway truck or motor vehicle and interconnected by binding means.

Wound vessels of large size are in general well known. These consist substantially of a relatively thin-walled core tube and of a band layer which is wound on the core tube and is threaded on the outside, or both on the outside :and inside. When the Winding band is threaded on the inner side as well, then the thread of the band has been formed (by turning) on the outer surface of the core tube. Large vessels have hitherto not been used on rolling stock in horizontal arrangement for the conveyance of industrial gases. The idea of using large vessels in a horizontal position on rolling stock led to the special construction of the large vessels according to the present invention, which consists in that the two ends of a vessel are made of sheet rnetal domed hemispherically outwards. According to the invention, these ends are so constructed that their cylindrical end portions facing the vessel form the continuation of the core tube shell, with which the cylindrical end portions are united by welding. The winding band also extends over the cylindrical end portions of the vessel ends; the domed ends and the core tube shell are held together by means of the winding band and by means of shrunk-on rings of a known kind.

Patented May 16, 1961 The hitherto usual stationary, erect large vessels made the use of flat ends possible, with specially tight-jointed ange fixtures. Owing `to the use of domed vessel ends in accordance with the invention, the special tight-jointing means become superuous, so that the form of end closure according to the invention provides a saving in weight. Moreover, the strength conditions of the domed vessel ends are greatly superior to those of the flat ends.

The large vessels according to the invention have an internal diameter of more than 500 mm., preferably 1000 mm. Their length corresponds to that of the truck frame and amounts to about l0 to 15 meters, and they are rated for the known p.s.i. optimum working gauge pressure. Each of` said vessels consists of a thin-walled externally triple-threaded core tube and of 3 to 4 externally ribbed and internally grooved binding layers wound on said tube, the tube being provided at its two ends with hemispherically outwardly domed closures made of sheet metal, the ends of said closures facing the vessel core tube being provided with cylindrical portions that form the continuation of the core tube shell with which the said cylindrical portions are united by welding and the winding band extends over the cylindrical portions of the domed end closures and the core tube shell `and are held together by winding bands and shrunk-on rings.

The accompanying drawing illustrates by way of example a constructional form of the arrangement which consists of a railway truck for the transport of natural gas `with four large vessels.

Figure 1 shows the vessel arrangement in perspective view;

Figure 2 is a diagrammatic longitudinal section of one of the large vessels on `a larger scale; and

Figure 3 is `a sectional view, again on -a larger scale, on line III-III of Fig. 2 through one of the welded joints of the core tube, the section illustrating the shell construction.

In an illustrated constructional form of the arrangement with large vessels according to the invention, there are mounted on the trarne 7 of the railway truck four large vessels 1 in pairs one above the other as shown in Fig. l.

The large vessel 1 shown in Fig. 2 consists of a thinwalled core tube 2, two domed sheet metal heads 3 and wound-0n band layers 4. The band layers 4 are provided on their inside with triple ribs and on their outside With corresponding triple grooves. To each of the two ends of the sheet metal core tube 2 is attached a hemispherical, outwardly domed end portion 3, also made of sheet metal. The domed end portions have cylindrical end extensions which are congruent with the core tube ends and the said extensions are provided with triple threads of the same type as those of the core tube. The end portions 3 each have cylindrical ends facing the vessel core tube and forming the continuation of the core tube shell 2 of the large vessel, the core tube shell being united with the cylindrical ends of the end portions by welding The winding band 4 extends also to the cylindrical ends of the domed vessel ends and the latter and the core tube shell 2 are held together by means of the winding band 4 and the shrunk-on rings 5.

The core tube 2 shown in Fig. 3 is provided with -a triple helical thread on its outer surface for the reception of the triple ribs of the Winding band 4, of 3 to 4 binding layers. The thread extends along the entire length of the core tube shell. The horizontal forces due to the accelerations during transportation of the large vessel are absorbed in a known manner by the supporting members mounted on the railway truck and by the connecting elements fixing the large vessels to the truck.

The supporting members are formed substantially by the supports 8, intermediate girder 9, tension rods 10 and rings 11. On the truck frame 7 are two supports 8 which carry the two lower vessels 1. Above each support 8 is arranged one of the girders 9, which are ixed each by a tension rod 10 to the truck frame 7. The intermediate girders 9 support the two upper vessels. To the supports 8 and intermediate girders 9 are iiXed the rings 11, the inner surface of which is grooved, the corresponding ribs of the outer band layer of the vessel engaging in these grooves.

The large vessels are ixed to the truck by means of inverted U-shaped straps 12.

For reasons of Stability, it is of advantage to interconnect the large vessels with holding devices which consist, in the example under consideration, of girders 13 and straps 14 arranged between the two supports 8. As compared with the arrangement with many cylinders, the arrangement according to the invention will transport la quantity of gas, which is about 40% greater. The dead weight of the arrangement according to the invention is about 25% less compared with the known arrangement.

Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our invention and in what manner the s-ame is to -be performed, we declare that what we claim is:

1. A pressure vessel, for transporting gases at super atmospheric pressures on railway rolling stock, having an internal diameter of more than 500 mm. and having a length corresponding to that of the railway car on which it is transported, the working pressure of said vessel being of the order of 150 p.s.i. gauge; said pressure vessel comprising, in combination, a relatively elongated, thinwalled tubular body having its external surface formed with a triple helical thread; a pair of substantially hemispherical outwardly domed heads formed of sheet metal and'having cylindrical end extensions, said end extensions also having their external surfaces formed with a triple helical thread like the thread of the said tubular body, said extensions further being congruent with said body and of -appreciable axial extent; circumferential welds uniting said end extensions to the congruent facing ends of said body; a plurality of steel bands wound helically over the external surface of said Vessel including the external sur-face, of said body and the external cylindrical surface of said end extensions of said heads, said bands having triple ribs on their inner surfaces engageable in the triple thread of said body and extensions, and triple grooves on their outer surfaces corresponding to the ribs on the inner surface and arranged to interiit with the ribs on a like band; land rings shrunk on the ends of said winding bands, substantially flush with the axially opposite ends thereof and having a width substantially equa-1 to the axial extent of said end extensions of the heads.

2. A pressure vessel as claimed in claim 1 in which there is a plurality of superposcd interengaging layers of such winding bands.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 859,896 Scott July 9, 1907 1,523,252 Bradley et al. Jan. 13, 1925 1,661,000 Madden et tal. Feb. 28, 1928 1,661,001 Madden et al. Feb. 28, 1928 1,817,581 Pierce Aug. 4, 1931 2,119,718 Kepler et al. Feb. 27, 1940 2,312,420 Kopf et al. Mar. 2, 1943 2,326,176 Schierenbeck Aug. 10, 1943 2,366,617 Harris Jan. 2, 1945 2,376,351 Gay May 22, 1945 2,600,630 Ferguson June 17, 1952 2,652,943 Williams Sept. 22, 1953 

